


Maybe the Daisy will know || Anne with an E

by MlleRitournelle



Category: Anne with an E (TV)
Genre: Anne Shirley Realizes Feelings For Gilbert Blythe, Anne Shirley in Denial, Anne with an E (TV): Season 03, Confused Gilbert Blythe, Diana Barry Ships Gilbert Blythe/Anne Shirley, Episode Fix-it, Episode Related, Episode Remix, F/M, Gilbert Blythe & Anne Shirley Friendship, Gilbert Blythe and Anne Shirley Use Their Words, Gilbert Blythe has Heart Eyes, Gilbert Blythe/Anne Shirley Dancing, I stand for lily of the valley, Oblivious Gilbert Blythe/Anne Shirley, Protective Gilbert Blythe, Stubborn Anne Shirley, What-If
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2021-02-18
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:14:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27372511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MlleRitournelle/pseuds/MlleRitournelle
Summary: Gilbert did not invite Winifred to the County Fair, while Anne prepares for the big day, she realizes something about Gilbert. What's going to happen at the County Fair and the Barn Dance?rewriting episode 6 of season 3( This fic like all my other fics are also available on Wattpad and Fanfiction.net : @mlleritournelle )
Relationships: Gilbert Blythe & Anne Shirley, Gilbert Blythe/Anne Shirley
Comments: 36
Kudos: 93





	1. Denial is a stubborn thing

It was a beautiful day in Green Gables, Matthew was in his vegetable garden digging up his vegetables, while Anne was with Marilla in the kitchen making pastries.

The teenage girl was just sneezing, her nose was red, meaning she had been dragging her cold for a while, she sneezed a big blow, smothering the noise in her apron.

"My word, I felt the house shake that time.", said Marilla who was standing next to her, "Now, where was I?", she went to the stove to watch the cooking.

"A cold in the head at the start of summer vacation is an immoral thing.", said the young redhead with a nasal voice.

"As are chatty distractions when a red ribbon is on the line.", replied the woman with the bun in a rather stern tone.

But Anne answered determinedly, "But nothing short of absolute pneumonia could quench my interest in culinary matters this morning. I am determined to do Mary proud at the fair tomorrow.", Then she took a deep breath, "Of course, cakes have such a terrible habit of turning out bad just when you especially want them to be good.”

"You can start by not sneezing in the batter.", The elderly woman, who was always so serious, advised, "Now please try not to distract me. These plum puffs must remain famous, not infamous."

The girl looked at Marilla, "You have nothing to fear, Marilla, you win your category every year. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we had a Green Gables sweep?”

The old woman smiled at her, then Anne immediately added, "Your plum puffs, my “Mary” cake and Matthew’s...", the latter could not finish her sentence and sneezed again in her apron, as for Marilla, surprised once again, she stared at her with a grimace.

Just as Marilla was about to say something, "by the way, I needed you to do me a favor today, I hope you're not too sick to-"

They heard someone shouting, "Whoo!!”

"Mercy on us! What was that?!", exclaimed the woman with the bun as she rushed out of the house.

Anne was also surprised, she was going to join Marilla, but out of clumsiness she dropped a bottle on the floor, "Oh... no. The vanilla!”

Meanwhile, the old woman rushed outside, "Matthew! Are you alright?", she saw her brother kneeling in his vegetable garden holding a huge radish, "Goodness me!", she noticed immediately with a smile.

Jerry arrived at the same time, "Oh, Mr. Cuthbert, that is the biggest radish I ever seen.”

"I reckon your friend Jack may take a backseat this year.", said Marilla, her brother immediately smiled proudly at the remark.

In the house, after cleaning up the broken glass, Anne went into the pantry, looking for another bottle of vanilla, panicked she rummaged through the shelves, "Oh, please, please, please, please..."

Then after a few seconds of searching, “Oh...Yes!”, she whispered, she came across a small bottle with the label _"Best Vanilla" on it._ She was so relieved that she put a kiss on the bottle, which made her sneeze afterwards.

At the same time at the Blythe and Lacroix house, Sebastian was trying his hand at knitting in his room, comfortably seated on an armchair, with his daughter nearby in her crib.

When Gilbert suddenly walked into the room, "I think I made a mistake.”

"You mean this morning's oatmeal?", Bash replied mockingly.

"I always appreciate these remarks about my cooking, but... I was wondering whether I should have invited Winifred to the fair. I think it would have been customary to do so.", the young man thought.

"Not to mention customary. Why didn't you?", asked the young father, frowning.

"I don't know, I had told her about the fair the other day, then moving from one topic to another, I forgot.”

"You forgot, uh?", Sebastian laughed and asked.

"There's nothing funny about it, she agreed to visit me and I didn't take the chance. I just forgot."

"So... Does all this mean things are getting serious with you and Winnie?"

Gilbert winced at this remark, "Oh...no. She's easy to be with. I mean... I’m fond of her.", He corrected himself by taking a look at Bash.

"I wouldn't have forgotten to invite your mother.", said the young father looking at his daughter.

"I was just... I was thinking about other things.", he says, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"You will have many more opportunities to remember. But now I understand that you have no excuse not to come with me tomorrow at the fair?", Bash had a big smile when he said this.

"The Cuthberts don't come with you?", asked the young man in surprise.

"I'd like to be with my family if possible, and then... I couldn't always be with the Cuthberts, they take part in different competitions. A black man walking alone at the fair, among white people, need I say more?", he said sarcastically.

"I think whether I come with you or not, it won't change anything to that, unfortunately."

"But...", Sebastian pointed at Delphine, "Look at her, she's the one asking for it, you' d say no?", he asked pouting.

"If she asks for it, I'll think about it...", declared Gilbert smiling.

At Green Gables, Anne was still cooking, she went to check the baking of her cake when Marilla approached her to see.

"Don't touch them!", exclaimed the young redhead.

"Oh, well, forgive me for--", answered the woman with the bun, offended.

"I'm sorry...Marilla, but... I want to win... solely on my own merit.”, said the young girl, sniffing because of her cold.

Then Marilla watched proudly as the teenager placed her hot cakes on the table.

When suddenly Anne looked sadly at her cakes, a tear rolled down her cheeks.

"Well, it looks fine to me.", said immediately the woman with the bun confused.

The young redheaded girl laughed nervously with a few sobs in her voice, "It's perfect.", Then she added, looking at Marilla, "Oh, I wish Mary could see it. I've never made anything perfect before.”

The old woman tapped her on the shoulder, "I'm sure she's smiling from heaven.”

Suddenly Marilla remembered one thing, she was looking for something in the living room, "Oh... Earlier I wanted to ask you if you could...", Then she came back to the kitchen, "...bring this to Sebastian.", She showed Anne a beautiful piece of knitting, it looked like a cardigan, there were some flowers crocheted, "I'd love Delphine to wear it tomorrow, it's her first County Fair after all."

Anne was immediately alarmed, "Oh no, no, Marilla, you can't ask me that. And then I have a cold, I don't want to pass it on to Delphine. »

"You won't need to see Delphine. You'll give it to Sebastian or Gilbert."

"Let him see me like... I mean, no, no, no!", panicked the young redhead.

"All right, all right... I won't have any time to do it myself, so hopefully Sebastian will have the idea to visit us today. Otherwise I'll see him tomorrow when we go to the fair together."

"Oh, we're going to the fair with Sebastian and Delphine?", exclaimed the young girl, suddenly more excited about the idea.

"And probably Gilbert too, do you know if he's coming?"

"How could I know?", Anne answered firmly.

"When you're done, I'd like you to pick up the laundry I hung outside in an hour or two.”

"I’ll...", the redhead cried out with a loud sneeze, fortunately she was still able to bury her head in her apron, "...do it, Marilla.”

"Goodness gracious, some more and you'd sneeze on the cake. It's finally a good thing you're don’t visit Sebastian.", with these words Marilla left the kitchen, leaving Anne more exhausted than ever from her sneezes.

In the early afternoon, Gilbert was saddling his horse in the barn, while Sebastian stood beside him, "Please give this to Marilla, I'd like to thank her for everything she has done for me these past few weeks.”

"Mary's Jam?"

"I've tried to make it, I hope it's not too infamous."

The dark-haired boy was starting to leave, when Bash added, "Oh, and don't forget to ask Marilla if we're coming to pick them up tomorrow or not?”

Gilbert replied sarcastically, "Well, that's why I'm going, isn't it?", and then he left in the direction of Green Gables.

Anne had finished her kitchen chores some time ago. She was now getting ready to take out the laundry that had been drying outside all morning, she had a wicker basket in her hand, she seemed even sicker than before, with a swollen and red nose.

She stopped between the two clotheslines and then put the basket at her feet, she was about to start removing the huge sheet stretched out in front of her, when she heard a familiar voice, then the sound of a horse trotting.

"Thank you Jerry," said a distant voice.

No doubt about it, it was Gilbert's voice. Then she passed her head slightly and saw Jerry closing the gate.

Suddenly, she saw Gilbert, riding proudly on his horse, he was wearing a small brown jacket, his brown curls were flying due to a light breeze, and he had a high chin. Perhaps it was her health condition that was fooling her, but his arrival seemed so graceful.

The young brown stopped his horse at the foot of a tree and tied it to the wooden stake. Anne always observed the young man's movements, this one was only a few steps away from her, she didn't really know why, but each of his gestures seemed so graceful to her, her mouth was slightly ajar, as if she was extremely concentrated on her task.

And then suddenly she sniffed, her nose itched, a sneezing urge was felt, she tried to hold it in, but it made things worse. Gilbert should not have been aware of her presence. But when she finally sneezed, with an immense noise, she could be heard all over Green Gables. So, obviously, it couldn't have escaped Gilbert's ears, who turned his head towards the clotheslines.

The young redhead was in the depths of despair, why did it always have to happen at the worst possible moment? Luckily a huge sheet was hiding her, which prevented the dark-haired boy from seeing her. She didn't even dare to make the slightest movement, he shouldn't see her, if he did, it would be... so humiliating! Why? She didn't really know, well, maybe because of her scarlet red nose, or even her eyes which were getting bloodshot from sneezing over and over again. That's it, he shouldn't see her with this appearance, she wouldn't allow anyone to see her in this terrible state, and it had nothing to do with Gilbert Blythe.

Then she remained hidden behind the sheet, avoiding making the slightest movement, he would probably not stay long, he would leave at once. Besides, why had he come?

Before entering the house, the young man glanced again at the stretched linen, then he saw a silhouette emerging behind the large sheet, the sun was not kind to Anne, highlighted her silhouette, and the two braids that he could discern could not deceive him, it was Anne, and this idea made him smile.

When he finally opened the door, he saw Marilla who was putting up her Plum Puffs.

"Hello, Miss Cuthbert."

She jumped when she heard her name, she was so concentrated on her task, that she hadn't heard him come in.

"Oh, Gilbert! What brings you here? Oh, let me guess, Sebastian sent you?"

"Well yes, Bash gave me this, he wanted to bring it to you.", he said as he put the jar of jam on the table, "Oh, and then he wondered if tomorrow we should come and pick you up or not?"

"Oh well, we'll come, our cart being bigger. So you’re coming too?”

"Yes, I think Bash insisted on It.", he replied, laughing.

"I almost forgot! Wait a minute, I have to fetch something.”

Gilbert simply nodded and remained alone in the kitchen, and then he saw a beautiful cake resting on the corner of the table.

When Marilla came back with an item of clothing, she surprised him, staring at the cake, "I wanted Delphine to wear it tomorrow if Sebastian agrees, I finished it yesterday." Then she presented him the little cardigan, which he immediately took.

Seeing Gilbert's attention on the cake, the elderly woman couldn't help but declare, "It's beautiful, isn't it? Anne was so proud earlier, Mary would be too.", she smiled.

"Oh, Anne made this?", asked the dreamy young man.

"Well, yes, she hopes to win the red ribbon in her category tomorrow."

"Anne never aims for a second place.", he said, laughing and scratching his head, which made Marilla smile.

Anne was always impatient standing behind the huge sheet, she wondered if he was deliberately dragging himself so long. Then a thought crossed her mind, maybe he was looking for her? No, there was no reason to think that.

In a few minutes, he would be out, and she could finally get on with her life.

Suddenly, a voice alerted her.

"Good day, Miss Cuthbert, give my regards to Anne and Mr. Cuthbert."

Marilla nodded and returned to the house, waving to the young man for the last time.

As he was unhooking his horse from the wooden stake, a deafening noise was heard, it was the same as earlier, so he turned around.

The young redhead cursed herself as never before, as she watched Gilbert about to leave, it was as if she had lost control again, and her body was calling her to order. Her sneeze made an even bigger noise than before.

It was certain now that the young man had far less doubt about where the noise was coming from, so he glanced again at the clotheslines, where he had been able to see the girl's silhouette. All of a sudden a violent breeze was felt and in its path lifted the large sheet that had been hiding Anne until now.

The young girl widened her eyes, she hardly had time to react, it was too late, the dark-haired boy had seen her. She immediately saw a small smile appear on his face as soon as he looked at her.

The young man was content to greet her from afar, and Anne in turn imitated him with immense embarrassment. While Gilbert rode on his horse, she tried to keep her dignity by finally carrying out the task entrusted to her. Then she began to loosen the large sheet and put it in the laundry basket. She glanced briefly at the young brown, who had not yet left, then suddenly he surprised her with a brief glance, and she immediately looked away.

The teenager took the reins of his horse and galloped away. Once again the young girl could not help but watch him leave as she continued her task. Her mouth was half open, she was once again too focused on what she was looking at. Suddenly her thoughts were turned upside down by Marilla's intervention.

"Well, what's taking you so long to take down this laundry? Do you want me to finish so you can rest?", Asked the woman with the bun, who seemed a bit worried.

The redheaded girl felt terribly embarrassed, she had the feeling she had been surprised to do something wrong, "Ma-Marilla, no, no, I'm finishing."

"Fine, but get some rest after that, will you? You'll have to be in shape tomorrow for the fair, plus we're leaving early to pick up Sebastian, Delphine and Gilbert.”

This announcement scared her, she didn't really know why, "But...But there isn't enough space for everyone in the carriage?"

"Of course it is..."

"And the cake? Marilla, I-I can't afford to ruin it."

"Well, if there's no space for your cake, we'll do it another way. All you have to do is ride with Gilbert in his carriage if you're so afraid for your cake."

"But, it-it makes no sense at all!", she exclaimed as she left with the laundry in her arms, leaving the woman with the bun completely perplexed by her reaction.

A moment later, the girl was in her room, she had refreshed her face with some water, she had to rest a bit afterwards, but she was not able to do so. She knew that she had said to Marilla that it wasn't possible for her to visit anyone today, but she had to visit her friend Diana at all costs.

So with the utmost discretion, she opened the door to her room, and then tiptoed through the corridor to avoid cracking the floor. Because if Marilla saw her, it was sure that she would persuade her to stay, and besides she would not lose an opportunity to confront her contradictions.

When she went downstairs, she saw the elderly woman who was now preparing dinner for tonight. The latter was from the back, so Anne had the opportunity to sneak without her noticing her.

A few moments later, the young redhead was in her friend's room lamenting. She was lying on her friend's bed. As for the young brunette, she was visibly making an inventory of her dresses to find out which of them Anne could wear tomorrow.

"Oh, it was excruciating! I've never been more embarrassed!", said Anne, who was in the depths of despair.

This amused the young brunette, "I can think of a few other examples. And since when do you care what Gilbert Blythe thinks?”

She straightened up, she was about to sneeze again, when Diana rushed to hand her a handkerchief.

The young redhead cried out with a loud sneeze, and finally answered, "I don't! Why did he have to catch me in such a disastrous state? He, on the other hand, looked as if he’d just galloped out of the pages of a novel.”

Anne seemed to be somewhere else, and then she said in a dreamy way, "What a splendid chin he has. I never noticed it before.

"A splendid chin,?", Diana replied with a teasing smile.

"Yes.", she answered in a small whisper while lying on her stomach.

"Choose. Wearing a special dress tomorrow will do wonders for your beleaguered soul. You never know who you'll meet at the fair.”

"Gilbert... We're going together tomorrow morning."

"You mean just you and Gilbert?", she says worried.

"Oh... no, no. It's Marilla, she wanted to accompany Sebastian and Delphine tomorrow, and then... apparently Gilbert will be there too."

"Why did he visit you, by the way?"

"I don't know, maybe Sebastian had sent him. »

"Or maybe he just wanted to see you.", said Diana with a smile.

"Hmm.", Anne said skeptically.

"Like when a boy goes out of his way to walk you home, even though it's forbidden.", the young brunette was definitely thinking of Jerry when she said that.

"Bless you, dearest of Dianas, but what are you talking about?", replied the confused young redhead.

"Um, you remember when Cole said he thought Gilbert had a crush on you?", asked her friend with a small smile, subtly trying to change the subject.

"It's not true...", the redheaded girl replied, giggling and standing up straight, "Could it be true?", she asked more seriously.

Suddenly a little girl's voice came out, "My name is Diana Barry.", it was Minnie May who was hiding in a wardrobe, she had put on a dress that belonged to her older sister, and she came out of the wardrobe and continued, “I don’t want to go to finishing school in Paris!”

Diana looked up to heaven and sighed as she saw her little sister coming out, while she continued to select dresses for her friend.

"I always put my foot in it with Gilbert. Always.", said Anne upset.

Minnie May continued her sister's imitation, "Paris is boring, and so am I.”

"The only time I didn’t was at dance practice, and that’s because I couldn't find any words at all, just very confusing feelings.”, she said pensively.

"Feelings? Do tell.", Said the young brunette with a smile, while checking if the dresses she had selected corresponded to the young redhead's complexion.

"It was like a veil...hanging before my inner consciousness...was suddenly lifted...and I was Elizabeth Bennet dancing with Mr. Darcy.", she said dreamily.

Diana smiled when she heard this.

"Every time our hands touched, it was... I think he felt it too. Because his eyes were...", she didn't manage to finish her sentence, as dreamy as ever.

"I'm reading a monster book.", Minnie May interrupted again, holding the book that Jerry had given to Diana, as she began to imitate the sound of a monster, "Grrrr! Grrrr! Grrrr!”

Her older sister immediately lost her patience, went up to her, and took the book from her hands and hid it under a cover, "Minnie May, get out!", which the child did immediately, giggling.

Meanwhile Anne was still doing her monologue, she was fidgeting on the bed, and then she lay down on her back, "His eyes! That's what Ruby observed when I was telling him about the Take Notice Board. When we danced, he was gazing at me like...", she simply breathed in, unable to finish her sentence.

Diana, seeing her friend in full questioning, sat down beside her, cautiously she began to say, "Anne, I'm going to ask you a question. Don't be vexed and do answer earnestly.”

The young redhead looked at her friend attentively, and then the young brunette asked, "Do you have a crush on Gilbert?”

As soon as these words were uttered, Anne stood up to sneeze into her handkerchief, but she realized at this moment that perhaps...


	2. He loves me...

When Anne returned to Green Gables, it was late afternoon. With the utmost discretion, she tried to sneak into the house without being seen, so she went through the door leading into the living room.

Unfortunately for the girl, Matthew was there, sitting in an armchair, reading a book.

"Oh, I thought you were resting in your room?", said Matthew innocently, but he was surprised to see her arrive with a dress in her hand and ribbons in her hair.

"Oh, Matthew, I... I was actually at Diana's house, to...", she replied, glancing at the sky-blue dress she was holding in her arms.

"What is...?", he tried to ask without knowing how to finish his question, he gestured with his index finger towards his hair, he was apparently referring to her ribbons rolled up in her hair.

"Oh this… it was Diana, who lent me her ribbons, and it was also she who wrapped the ribbons in my hair, I had never tried to curl myself."

"These ribbons, this hairstyle, is it for tomorrow?", asked the old man naively.

"Of course not, it's to have nice curls in the morning, I would only sleep one night with the ribbons.", She laughed and explained that she knew that he was not interested in these coquetries. And it is not with Marilla that he would have heard about it.

"Oh, I see.", He simply replied, his eyes a little lost, even if he didn't understand these things, he knew they were important to Anne.

The young redhead said in a worried tone, "But, Ma-Marilla must not know that I was at Diana's house, can we keep this between us, Matthew?"

"She'll wonder how you got that dress.", answered the pragmatic old man.

Suddenly Marilla entered in the living room, "Well, what's going on here? Supper will be ready in an hour."

The young redhead was so panicked, she stammered, "Oh Ma-Marilla! Uh, Diana brought it to me!", and then she quickly climbed the stairs to get upstairs.

Matthew glanced at his sister, he was just as confused as she was.

The next morning, the Cuthberts got up at dawn and all dressed elegantly for the day, which was in some ways the event of the year.

Matthew tried his best to fix his hair in front of the mirror, and then once he was ready he went to polish his radish so that it would be perfect for the contest.

While Marilla carefully chose her best plum puffs, placing them as delicately as possible in her wicker basket.

Anne was particularly excited about the day, she was still in her room in front of the mirror undoing her ribbons, seeing her hair with curls so beautifully filled her with joy. But the girl was also in the grip of great questioning. Indeed, feelings were also running through her head, she had realized something yesterday at Diana's house. Did she have a crush on Gilbert? Her friend may have taken all the precautions necessary before asking her famous question, but she felt like she had been slapped in her face.

Once all her ribbons were removed and her sky-blue dress put on, she was almost ready. Then she remembered that Diana had lent her a pretty sky blue ribbon that matched her dress perfectly, so she tied a beautiful knot in her hair, and then nervous she left her room.

Later, she found herself in the barn, sitting on a wooden railing. She was stripping the petals off a daisy, and with each petal she pulled out, she said, "He loves me… He loves me not.”

She sighed, then declared dreamy, as she looked at the foal standing next to her, "Perhaps love unfolds out of a burgeoning friendship, as a golden-hearted rose slips from its green sheath...”

"He loves me…", she says again as she removes another petal.

"But what if romance spoils our friendship?", she worriedly wondered, "I won't let it. Maybe it's better if he doesn't love me. Next to true love, the best thing is unrequited love. It's even more romantic when you think about it.”

She caressed the foal while saying thoughtfully, "All the great stories are about unrequited love.", She then tried to convince herself, "In fact, I hope he doesn't love me.”

A noisy breath from the mare was heard, "You're right as always, Belle.", said the young redhead looking at her, “I don't know what I want.", she added with a nervous sneer.

Soon after, Anne heard her name, it was Marilla calling her from the other side of Green Gables, Matthew and his sister were both already settled in their cart. When the girl saw them, she ran to join them, "I'm coming, I'm coming!"

"This is no time to daydream!", exclaimed the woman with the bun.

The redhead gasped, "Day-daydreaming, but no, I-"

But the elderly woman didn't let her finish, "No time to chat, at this point, Sebastian and Gilbert must be getting impatient! »

Once the girl was settled in the carriage, Matthew took the reins and they were finally gone.

Meanwhile, Sebastian and Gilbert were in the midst of their preparations, as they were making an inventory of what they needed to take care of little Delphine.

The dark-haired boy carried the baby carriage to the porch, while Bash followed him very closely with his daughter in his arms and a shoulder strap that contained all sorts of necessities.

"Bottles, nappies, pram, all that's missing is the Cuthberts if they haven't forgotten us.", laughed the young father.

"Knowing Anne, she had to take great care to work on the presentation of her cake.", said the brown-haired boy with a smile.

"Maybe you should hitch up the horse just in case...", Retorted Bash laughed.

Gilbert chuckled and disapproved, when suddenly they heard the Cuthberts' cart arrive. Anne was sitting in the back, she had one hand on her hat to hold it up, lest the light breeze and the movement of the buggy carry it away.

When Gilbert saw the young woman in the distance, he couldn't help but notice that the girl's red hair was floating in the air. The sun's rays enhanced the color of her hair, making her bright.

Then finally he noticed the dress she was wearing, it seemed to match the color of her eyes perfectly. The young man didn't even realize it, but he literally smiled with his eyes as he gazed at the young redhead. Suddenly, he was taken out of his reverie by Sebastian.

"Oh, Anne is so elegant today.", Bash simply remarked.

Gilbert immediately had the feeling that he had read his thoughts, he felt embarrassed, "Are you sure you haven't forgotten anything?", said the teenager as if to change the topic.

The young father just giggled, and walked towards the Cuthberts who had just stopped their buggy.

"I'm sorry for the request, but it seems that Anne would like us to travel in two different carts. Sebastian, you can put your pram in ours because it's more spacious. »

Anne looked at Marilla in disbelief, "But no, I never said that! I-"

"You know how I feel about lies, Anne.", replied Marilla, interrupting her.

"But Marilla-"

"Enough talk, take your cake and join Gilbert, you'll have all the space you want over there."

Gilbert watched the scene with amusement, he couldn't help smiling as he listened to them quarrel, but in her own way Marilla was very protective of the young redhead.

The dark-haired boy intervened in an amused tone, while Anne got off the cart, "Then I'll prepare the buggy, this cake needs all the necessary space.”

She rolled her eyes, already regretting that the latter had once again something to tease her during the trip.

At the same time Bash gave Delphine to Marilla so that he could put the baby carriage into the vehicle. Then he moved to the back to retrieve his daughter from the old woman's arms. He couldn't help smiling when he saw Gilbert harnessing the horse to the buggy, he thought that the two teenagers would certainly not be bored.

Meanwhile, Anne waited patiently to put her cake in the back of the dark-haired boy's buggy. She was both embarrassed by the scene that had just happened, Marilla never lost an opportunity to make her feel uncomfortable, and of course Gilbert had to be around in those moments. She knew that he took some pleasure in teasing her whenever he could. That smirk... he still had it today. And he had it ever since she knew him, from the very first day, in fact. That smirk never left his face anymore. And yet during the dance practice at school, it was something else. His smile... he was quite charming. And his eyes... seemed to kiss hers.

"Anne... This buggy seems to be just waiting for you and your cake.", Gilbert says in an amused tone, standing beside the cart, pulling the girl out of her thoughts.

She immediately walked to the vehicle and tried to wedge her cake in the back, "You can't believe what Marilla says. I never asked for this.", She protested while doing so.

The dark-haired boy watched her do it with a smirk on his face, "Oh besides... I hope you didn't forget to eat this morning, it's just to know if I should keep you away from the ditches."

"It's not funny, Gilbert. I forbid you to remind me of this ridiculous anecdote." she grumbled. This answer amused the young man all the more.

Then finally, she got ready to get down from the back of the cart, then she noticed the young man standing there, reaching out his hand to help her get down, he always had that smug little smile, which had the gift of annoying her. With hesitation, she then put her hand in his and got off the vehicle. The moment their hands touched, Anne felt a shiver running down her whole body. Was this what it felt like to have a crush on someone? Had he felt it too?

The young man had a little embarrassed laugh when she finally let go of his hand, this contact had been very brief but enough to confuse his feelings again. He had some feelings for the young redhead, but he had difficulty understanding what he was feeling. What could it mean? He took some pleasure in teasing her sometimes, because it was a way to be even closer to her, isn't that what friends would do? He certainly liked her a lot, and he was sure of that from day one. Their friendship had been so hard to build, she had never been the tenderest with him. But their friendship undoubtedly grew stronger after Mary's death. Who would have thought that Anne would be the person who would give him the most comfort to get through this ordeal? Certainly not him, he could never have imagined that she cared so much for him. Crying in her arms had been the most intimate moment he had experienced in years. There was no way he could lose her friendship because she meant so much to him now. So no, he could no longer think about what his feelings for her meant, because now they were friends for real. He didn't want to scare her away.

When Anne saw his little embarrassed smile, she immediately looked away and moved away from him, to settle into the cart.

"So we should hurry now, Matthew's buggy is long gone by now.", The girl said as she sat down in the front seat.

Gilbert immediately rushed to join her, took the reins and said at the same time, "I wouldn't take the same path as Matthew anyway. I have another way.”

"Another way?", asked the confused redheaded girl.

"You’ll see.", he said as he alerted the horse to move the cart forward.

"I remind you that I have my competition in the morning, I hope your other way is a shortcut."

"Why don't you ever trust me?", he asked amused.

"But I-I do trust you, I was just saying that-"

"I know. You just wanted to contradict me.", he said, interrupting her with a smile.

"No, I didn't. And... That answer doesn't matter.", She replied embarrassed.

Actually, the teenage girl did not know how to behave, why was she so defensive? She had to be as usual, but... With this dress, this hairstyle, it was definitely not a day like any other. She wanted him to notice her but at the same time she didn't really want that. He had been her friend for a while now, despite the differences they had had. And if love interfered with that, and it wasn't reciprocated, it would be worse than anything else. This friendship couldn't survive that, what an embarrassment it would be for her or for him...Only... He was so charming, and today of course it was worse than ever. With his sarcastic smiles, his reflections, his arrogance. Luckily, he was annoying and that compensated a bit for the fact that she fell under his spell despite everything. And if it was in fact exactly for that reason that she felt all this, even when he had the audacity to tease her, part of her liked it when he did. Wasn't that the most foolish thing?!

All her thoughts were jostling in her head, while he was sitting next to her with that smile, that smile so annoying, but at the same time so charming...

"So what are you planning to do at the fair today?", asked Anne.

"Well, I don't know, I'll probably stick with Bash and Delphine. Since I hadn't even planned to come to the fair in the first place..."

"Why did you want to deprive yourself of this outing? There aren't that many such events in the year."

"I guess I wanted to avoid going to the dance, I still hope Bash will never force me to go.", he replied with an embarrassed laugh.

The mention of the dance implied the Barn dance. This famous dance was practiced the other day at school. He must have really hated that dance to want to avoid it so much? Why did she now feel sad to hear that from the young man's mouth?

The young girl finally said, "I agree, this dance is awful, isn't it? How could Miss Stacy make us dance a whole afternoon instead of studying? I-I still can't believe it."

Gilbert, who hadn't even mentioned dance at school, suddenly had a wave of memories. Did she really think it was awful? Was it so horrible to dance with him? Of course on that same day he had made exactly the same comment as she had. But to hear her say that, it was like... a real stab in the heart. So he had dreamt her smiles? The way she looked at him? She seemed to be having fun, just like him, even though he had had a hard time admitting it. He had enjoyed sharing this moment with her, even if in fact they had never been alone during this dance, only her face had remained, and her smile, her gaze…

The young man cleared his throat before answering, "Hm. Yes, it was a waste of time, I... guess."

"I had the feel that you liked to dance though. But, if you...if you want to avoid that dance so much, you really hated it.", She retorted awkwardly, then she had a nervous chuckle and added, "I...I know I'm not the best dancer, I must be a terrible dancer."

"Oh no, I didn't want to insinuate that. I-I mean you're not a bad dancer at all. To be honest...I… I didn't find it unpleasant dancing with you."

The young redhead's face brightened, and then she felt warmth invade her cheeks. How could she respond to that? Then she cleared her throat in turn and said, "It's the same with you, I mean... you're not a bad dancer either, if you needed to be comforted."

"So we're both good dancers, I suppose. This is good to know."

Anne didn't even seem to hear Gilbert's comment, as she turned to look at the landscape behind her, "It's not the way. Where are you taking me?!"

"Trust me."

"But the coasts are on this side! There we sink into a grove. Gilbert, if I don't arrive on time for the competition... I already don't have the luck with me, so... "

"It's a good thing you're talking about luck. But you'll arrive on time, tru-"

"Trust me... I know, but what's the point of... ", she stopped talking by herself when she looked at the flower beds.

The dark-haired boy stopped the buggy at the same time in the midst of the path, he had a smile on his lips, he was rather proud of himself.

"You wanted to show me the first lily-of-the-valley flowers?", asked the young girl who couldn't help but be amazed.

"It's been at least a week since I spotted them. Will you come down? Wouldn't you say no to a lucky charm?”

"A lucky charm?”

"Didn't you know that lily of the valley is a lucky charm?"

She rolled her eyes, "I presume you're going to teach me something today.", she said as she got off the cart.

He did the same, and then began to explain, "Well, I read somewhere that lily of the valley is like a lucky charm. Did you know that it is celebrated in some European countries, especially in France, where they have been celebrating it on May 1st for centuries. We couldn't do it here because we have to wait until summer to see the first lily of the valley flowers appear."

"I know this last thing, I live here too, Gilbert."

The young man advanced towards the expanses of Lily of the Valley, and picked a sprig. Anne, who was then behind him, approached him when he signaled to come closer.

"You see the little bells, if you have thirteen bells on your sprig of lily of the valley, then it will bring you good luck."

The redhead began to giggle, "And since when are you superstitious?"

"I am not. It's just...I just thought you'd like the idea."

She sighed before saying, "I love this idea, but I don't have time for it.", She laughed nervously and added, "I can't afford to look for that famous sprig of lily of the valley, we'd spend the morning looking for it and I-",

The young girl paused when she saw Gilbert holding a new sprig of Lily of the Valley in front of her eyes, "I guess I found it for you.", he said with a small smile.

Indeed, the sprig of Lily of the Valley had thirteen small white bells. It was just a simple sprig of Lily of the Valley, but for the teenage girl, it meant so much. He had simply thought from the start to bring her here to give her this wild flower. Did he realize how romantic this gesture was? Of course he must have known... So Cole was right all along, Gilbert had a crush on her? Why else would he give her a flower? Of course the flower represented luck... but... it wasn't just that, was it?

Anne finally took the sprig of Lily of the Valley from the dark-haired boy's hand, but she was so confused by the situation that no words could come out of her mouth.

As for the young man, he was always content to gaze at her with certain tenderness. It melted his heart that the young redhead had not been able to say anything. It was so rare that he left her speechless, so he savored the moment.

Suddenly the young girl took Gilbert out of her daydream, "We-we should go now.", she said clumsily.

He simply nodded, and they left the bed of lily of the valley and headed back to the cart.

When the two young people had finally left, and the young man had taken over the reins, he couldn't help but notice that the young redhead was busy with something.

Indeed, Anne was placing the sprig of Lily of the Valley between her blue ribbon and her hair. And when Gilbert noticed this, he couldn't hold back a smile. Why did this simple gesture make him waver? It was only a wild flower, it was only a lucky charm? Then why did it make her look even more beautiful? Why was she so bright? Why did he want to...

The young man shook his head as if to pull himself together, then looked straight ahead again. As Anne glanced at him, she couldn't help but smile as she watched the young man. How was it possible to start the day in a better way? She began to think.

A few moments later, the two teenagers finally arrived at the County Fair, the place was already crowded.

Anne rushed to the back to get her cake, while the dark-haired boy tied the horse to a railing.

Then he finally made his way to the young girl who was having trouble coming down with her big cake.

"Let me help you, please?", asked the young man standing at the back of the cart.

Anne then handed him her precious cake, then put her hat back on her head before going down. Gilbert waited for the young redhead in front of the entrance to the fair.

She took a deep breath before joining him, her stomach was knotting up, she still didn't know why. Was it the competition that was stressing her or was it something else that was overwhelming her?

She was finally able to join him, and they both entered the fair.

At the same time, a luxurious carriage arrived on the road towards the County Fair, with a charming young blonde woman dressed in white on board. She had a smile on her face as she looked forward to the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you' re still enjoying this story! Oh and please don't forget to give me your feedback!
> 
> Small note in addition, for those who like to listen to music while reading, I listened a lot to this music while writing the scenes with the Lily of the Valley :
> 
> Oh my love - Ortolani Rice & Katyna Ranieri
> 
> (I don't usually share the music I listen to while writing, if you're interested I'll do it again, I listen to a lot of classical music)


	3. He loves me not.

Anne was amazed by everything around her, as could she not be? It was everything she loved, there were artists of all kinds who were in the midst of a performance, flame blower, juggler, clown, man on stilts. There was also a hot-air balloon that proudly stood at the entrance of the fair.

"Isn't it exciting?", she exclaimed as she stopped to admire the balloon.

Gilbert, who was slightly behind her and still carrying the cake, smiled as he saw her raving, he frowned, and then in an amused tone he said as he approached her, "Would you find it so exciting if you were up there?"

"I'd find the view all the more thrilling...", she smiled back, then added, looking at the cake, "Can I have my cake back?"

"I'm going with you, where should we bring it?"

Anne was surprised to hear this. Why did she have the feeling that he was doing his best to spend as much time with her as possible since this morning? How could she forget this detour through the forest, with its expanses of lily of the valley? How could she forget that he had given her this flower which was supposed to bring her luck? How could she not notice the smile of the dark-haired boy, who hadn't left his face since they left the woods?

"The competition takes place under the marquee.", She answered simply.

The two teenagers walked to the marquee and found Marilla, Matthew, Sebastian and Delphine gathered around a table watching the other participants' cakes.

Sebastian was the first to see them arrive, he couldn't hide a smile, the only thing missing was for Anne to take Gilbert by the arm, and they looked like a real couple who arrived at the fair. Marilla turned around in her turn, to see what made the young father smile, and it was with some satisfaction that she saw the young redhead accompanied by the young man, she had even let Gilbert carry her precious cake, if that wasn't a feat, and then what was it?

"Well, well. We're not waiting for you anymore.", Declared the woman with the bun.

Which alarmed the young girl, she answered not without certain awkwardness, "It's-it's not my fault. According to Gilbert, the path he chose to come here was far better."

This raised the young man's eyebrows, and then he smiled and said, "You didn't complain afterwards."

"Whatever. Give me that cake.", she says firmly as she takes the cake from the hands of the handsome young man.

Matthew seemed confused, and Bash couldn't hold a smile on his face when he saw what was happening right in front of him.

"Anyway, I'm a little nervous but I can't wait for the judges to see my cake. I mean, usually I wouldn't be very confident, but with Mary's recipe, I'm sure I'd get noticed."

Marilla, who was standing next to her, looked at the cake with questioning, "I'm surprised that your cake is so elegant and... sober. It's not really what I expected from you."

Then the girl showed her the two jars that she had brought with her, with a smile on her face, they were elements to decorate her cake, and to make a presentation more in her image.

"Of course...", said the old woman, then suddenly as she watched Anne dress her cake, she noticed something sticking out from under her hat, lily-of-the-valley bells? How could she have taken the time to find this, especially since it was necessary to go to the forest to find some in this period? Then she turned around to Gilbert, who was talking to Bash and Matthew, she smiled at him, the other path that had been mentioned rather now seemed quite obvious.

Marilla then approached Anne and whispered in her ear, "I see that the lily of the valley season has begun."

The young girl turned around in surprise and stammered, "It's, uh... Gilbert. I-I didn't expect him as superstitious."

"Sometimes you can change for a person or because of someone.", said the old woman with a smile.

The teenager didn't know what to say, she felt warmth rising in her cheeks, then went back to decorating her cake, as if she had never heard anything.

Suddenly Rachel arrived to speak with Marilla. They were talking about the recipes they had prepared for the contest. Matthew had already set up his radish, and he was finding out what his friend Jack was going to present for the competition.

Gilbert and Bash were both about to leave, the young father put Delphine back in her baby carriage, while the young brown was attentive to the Cuthbert’s conversation.

"So, are you done?" asked the woman with the bun, as she approached the redhead who was in front of her cake.

She turned around, "Yes, it's a feast for the eyes as well as the palate!", she exclaimed confidently, "Oh, and I'm number 16!"

"Quite a good omen, I'd say!", Replied Marilla with a smile.

Meanwhile Matthew was looking in his pockets for something, then he reached out to the young girl, it was a coin, "Here's... for whatever suits your fancy."

"Oh, thank you!", exclaimed Anne.

"Be back in an hour for the cake competition.", Marilla insisted firmly.

"Wild horses couldn't stop me.", said the self-confident teenager.

Before leaving the marquee, Anne met Gilbert's eyes, and they exchanged a smile, which didn’t escape Sebastian’s eyes.

He glanced at the young man and said, "You can go for a walk on your own if you want to, I mean, I'll stay with Marilla and Matthew for a while and wait for Anne's competition."

"I remind you that I came to the fair in the first place to accompany you."

"Oh, Blythe... please you'd have come anyway. We arrived forty-five minutes before the two of you actually did."

"What...? No, I-"

"I don't need to know anything. Take a walk.", He says firmly.

"If you insist.", replied the teenager with a smile, then he left the marquee immediately.

Anne was now strolling through the fairgrounds, she was so happy to be there and to see so much animation, smiles and laughter. This day definitely had everything to be wonderful, that nothing could spoil it. Nevertheless, as she looked at the various stands around her, her thoughts drifted for a few moments towards a certain young man. In fact, there might be one thing that could make this day even better... What if Gilbert came dancing tonight? And if their hands could still touch, graze, touch... why couldn't she think of something else? Undoubtedly, something had bloomed like a flower this morning.

The young redhead was still walking between the stands, when she saw a marquee that called out to her, there was a sign that said _"fortune teller"._

"You’re not planning to consult?"

This voice that seemed to come out of nowhere, yet how familiar it was, she turned around and saw Gilbert, with a smile on his face, rather proud of his sarcastic remark.

Anne rolled her eyes, "Well, earlier you seemed to be giving a lot of importance to a certain superstition. So I don't think you're in the best position to make fun of that belief."

"Well... I recognize that you got a point. But to tell the truth, I never believed that a flower could have this kind of power, I did it for you."

The teenager couldn't believe her ears, he had just said that he had done it for her, so with some hesitation she asked, "You did it for me?"

The dark-haired boy cleared his throat, he had just realized what he had just said, "Um. I meant, I wanted to believe it for you.”

But this precision shocked the young girl even more, "You wanted to believe it for me?", she could do nothing else but repeat what she had just heard, she thought that by doing so, it would make this moment even more real. Were they misunderstanding each other again, or this time they understood each other very well?

Gilbert couldn't hide an embarrassed smile, he couldn't add anything more to it, then finally he asked, "Would you...like to walk with me?".

The redhead simply nodded her head, and then joined him, with a shy little smile on her face. She wondered, what was she supposed to do, was this some kind of date? No, she was probably imagining things, it was a simple stroll. Yet when she looked around her, there were certainly lots of families, but above all there were some couples.

In the distance, they could see Josie Pye and Billy Andrews together, standing near the strength testing machine. They could see Billy trying to impress the young blonde girl.

"If there's anyone I don't miss at school, it's Billy Andrews."

"I can't contradict that.", Gilbert replied with a smile.

"I don't understand why men need to prove their strength. Should it be something to impress a girl?"

The dark-haired boy laughs at this question, "Well, he probably believes it anyway. I don't know what really impresses the girls. You must know that better than I do?", he asked with a smirk.

"Um... Well, first of all, smart, cultured, dreamy, funny, at least in his own way. It's also important that he's good at spelling, can you imagine a love letter full of spelling mistakes? Eventually adventurous, yes, I think I'd like him to travel, so that he can tell me all his adventures.", She concluded with a smile, but when she finished her sentence, she noticed that Gilbert stared at her in a funny way. And that's how she realized what she had just said, she was describing a certain person perfectly, and that person was beside her right now.

The young man stood still for a moment, his eyes seemed to smile, he wasn't dreaming, she had just described him perfectly, "Oh, I see. That's... very precise, demanding too."

"Hm! I...I don't think I'm demanding..."

"Oh, yeah?", he replied with an amused smile.

Anne smiled an embarrassed smile, had he realized that she had just talked about him? No longer wanting to talk about what she had just confessed, she asked him in turn, "And you, what thing would impress you about a girl?”

Gilbert looked up, and pretended to think, "Uh... I think she must be... passionate. Smart. Cute, and also-"

The young redhead interrupted him laughing.

"What's so funny?”

"Your list..."

"What's wrong with my list?”

"It starts out so boring..."

"So, you're judging me without letting me finish? By the way, good spelling is not a very hectic and exciting attribute."

"Good speller AND adventurous, Gilbert.", She laughed, "Then you can keep going, impress me.”

The teenager waited for the young man to continue but she realized that he seemed to be staring elsewhere.

Indeed, Gilbert had a distant glance, he had just seen a blonde lady he knew very well. At the sight of her, it was as if he was coming back to reality, since this morning he was so comfortable, he felt like he was in a cocoon when he was with Anne. For a few hours the young redhead was the only one in his thoughts. And now he had to return to this reality.

Anne was still over the moon, hadn't they been flirting since earlier? If it wasn't flirting, then what was the exchange they had just had? She was more and surer of it. Maybe he...

Suddenly, her thoughts were interrupted by a young woman's voice, and then she saw a smile on Gilbert's face.

"Beautiful day, isn't it, Mr. Blythe?"

"Winifred. I-I mean Miss Rose. Uh...it's a surprise to see you here." said Gilbert, who couldn't find the words, visibly taken aback.

"And I hoped I'd meet you, Gilbert.", replied the lovely blonde who stood behind Anne.

The young redhead's eyebrows raised, she looked behind her shoulder and saw the famous young lady. When she laid her eyes on her, she instantly thought that she was very elegant and she was... pretty or cute, as Gilbert might have said. How could he know this girl? Rather this woman... Because indeed, she had all the characteristics of a lady, she probably came from the city. But Anne didn't let herself be destabilized, there was a simple reason for Gilbert to know this woman, why should she wonder so much? But... She had just said that she hoped to meet him at the fair... She was definitely more daring than she was, it was certain, and this worried her in some way.

The young man cleared his throat before answering, "Hm. Anne... here-"

Anne interrupted him immediately, she kept a radiant smile on her face, "Winifred. I-I mean, I heard."

Gilbert didn't expect the young redhead to interrupt him like this, he frowned for a moment, not understanding this sudden reaction.

The teenager was now completely turned towards Winifred, as soon as she had finished her sentence, the young blonde offered her hand to greet her.

"So... Hello, Anne. Does it have to be spelled with an e?", asked the young lady, smiling as she waited for the redhead's hand.

The young girl hesitated for a moment before answering or making the slightest gesture, she felt so intimidated by the lady, and then finally she answered with a smile, "Anne...with an "e"."

When the dark-haired boy saw her answer this, he couldn't help but smile. As if every time he heard her make this precision, it brought back so many memories.

"Oh, my God! The clock is ticking, I-I have to go to my competition!", Anne exclaimed suddenly, taking the others by surprise.

"But... you still have thirty minutes before the competition starts.", said Gilbert with a light laugh, confused.

"That's true... but it's better if I'm early. ", She replied without knowing how to really justify herself. Indeed, the teenager wanted to flee this situation, whatever it might represent. She didn't know why she was feeling so uncomfortable, and she didn't want to find out right away.

So she left in a hurry and headed for the marquee. Gilbert watched her leave, frowning, wondering about the girl's sudden change of mood.

Winifred, as for her, didn't really know what to think of the young redhead. She had found her here walking around with his beau, she hadn't expected that. Although they were not walking arm in arm, it could very well have been the case, because before she interrupted them, she had noticed that the young people seemed to be radiated. But the instant the young man greeted her, it was as if she had just broken something. This thought pained her, because she did not want to imagine that Gilbert had any affection for this young girl. With all the dates they had had, he had never mentioned a certain Anne. Although... when she thought about it, he had mentioned a friend who had done a lot for him when he was losing Mary. He constantly said that he felt supported at Avonlea, and that he was not alone in his grief. She had automatically thought about Sebastian when he said this, but what if he had actually been talking about this girl all this time?

The young blonde girl smiled at the young man, noticing that he was watching the redhead walk away, "It's a girl who seems to know what she wants.", she said in an amused tone.

He was like surprised in his own thoughts, "Oh... that's certainly what she is.", he chuckled with eyes filled with a certain tenderness.

"You...you two look like you've known each other for a while?", she asked hesitantly, dreading at the same time the answer that would follow.

When they started walking towards the big marquee, Gilbert replied with a pensive look, he couldn't hide a smile, "For years now, we've been going to school together. It has grown into a friendship over the years.", He laughed, "It didn't start well at first. She's not... an easy girl to be with sometimes."

"I see... So you like girls who are easy to be with. I hope I'm not too disconcerting, Gilbert?"

The dark-haired boy wasn't expecting this question, "Uh... I feel like it's still a trick question, but I'd say that today you surprised me.", He replied with a smile, "Besides, did you come here alone?"

"Maybe there's a nice young man waiting for me somewhere... I wonder where he is."

"Really?", asked Gilbert, who was more than amazed by this answer.

Winifred laughed instantly, "Sorry, I couldn't help it. It's that you don't answer my questions clearly. Why should I answer it seriously?"

"Oh... I see, I've been fooled again.", replied the young man who suddenly felt stupid, then laughed.

"I came with my parents today. What kind of girl would I be if I ventured alone to a place I don't know?", She always says with a smile.

Gilbert didn't know what to say to that, all he could do was smile at her.

Under the marquee, Anne was with Marilla, Matthew and Sebastian. When she joined them, everyone had noticed that she had a look that was considerably less cheerful than before. They suspected that something had happened.

"I didn't think you'd be back so soon.", Marilla said.

Bash frowned, because he expected her to come back with Gilbert, "Oh, I thought you would be back with the doc."

"Gil...Gilbert? Why would I know where he is? I-I left him in good company... I guess.", she declared awkwardly.

Instantly, Marilla and Sebastian exchanged a look full of innuendo. While Matthew seemed embarrassed by the conversation, he didn't dare to look anyone in the eye, because he had realized that things about romance were not his cup of tea.

Suddenly Gilbert arrived in his turn under the marquee, Winifred was at his side, she seemed quite curious to discover all the excitement surrounding this competition. She stumbled on a bale of dirt, and the young man, like a good gentleman, grabbed her by the arm to help her. They were now arm in arm.

Sebastian was the first to see them arrive, he could barely hide his surprise. Anne, who had then crossed the young father's gaze, turned around to see what had taken his attention.

The young teenager's face changed from surprise to sadness in a split second. Why was it so heartbreaking to see Gilbert so close to a girl who wasn't her? Oh, and it wasn't just any girl... She was so elegant and sparkling... She couldn't help thinking that the outfit Diana had chosen for her today wasn't enough. She could never compete, she looked like a child. Even worse, she thought she looked ridiculous... And then this sprig of lily-of-the-valley she had slipped into her hair... What a foolish and naive thing... A woman like her wouldn't have done that. Perhaps it was this simple detail that revealed that they did not compete in the same category. But the young girl took a deep breath before they joined her at her side.

Marilla and Matthew noticed the young redhead's sudden anxious expression, so they turned their heads and instantly understood the possible reason for the mood change. They knew very well that their Anne got along very well with Gilbert. Marilla had even noticed the young man's fondness for her. Secretly, she had perhaps hoped that the two of them could form a beautiful couple, at least in the future. She didn't expect them to be so close yet, because for her, Anne was still a child. But she was forced to admit that Gilbert looked like a young man today, and that the teenage girl was on her way to adulthood now.

The brother and sister then smiled politely at the lady who accompanied the young man.

Gilbert cleared his throat, as if to warn of his presence at the Cuthberts, "Hm. Miss Cuthbert, Mr. Cuthbert, I'd like to introduce... uh... my... Miss Rose... I-I mean Winifred."

The Cuthberts nodded their heads, Marilla forced a smile, while Matthew was equal to himself, he didn't really show enthusiasm, and he was rather neutral when he saw the young blonde. They simply greeted her.

Bash smiled as he watched the scene, he had an irresistible urge to laugh, but he managed to contain himself, as the situation already seemed embarrassing enough for the dark-haired young man.

Anne pretended to be cheerful, she tried her best to smile when she saw them.

Winifred turned to the redheaded girl and said, "So, Anne. Gilbert tells me you're a classmate? Do you have any idea what you're planning to do after you finish your classes?"

The young girl glanced at Winifred's arm on Gilbert's arm, her mind went blank for a few seconds before she replied, "Uh... Well, I'm passing the exams for Queens, I'd like to teach in the future. Maybe to Avonlea, who knows...", she tried as hard as she could to maintain her best smile.

"Oh, that's a beautiful ambition! Why, Gilbert, you've never told me about your friend before, maybe you referred to her last time at the tea room?", asked the young blonde with a small smile.

The young man was not expecting this sudden question, "Well, that's..."

Anne then met the dark-haired boy's eyes as he seemed to be searching for his words. But she had an empty look, realizing at that very moment that he had had dates with this young lady, was he courting her? There were many details that spoke volumes, but why then had he never mentioned her before, would he have done so even if he hadn't met her today? She felt so foolish, how could she have thought that maybe... he loved her?

Since Winifred was there, nothing was the same, the detour of this morning in the woods surrounded by lily of the valley, gone. The little stroll and their discussion that seemed to be a flirtation were gone. All this, in fact, was nothing more than a friendly gesture, then a friendly walk, and a friendly conversation. There were no secrets, no hidden feelings. It was all the fault of her over-interpretation. And then the dance at school the other day... in the end, maybe she was the only one who felt something. Now... there was nothing left. Because all those moments that she thought they were shared, those instants that she thought were romantic, it was nothing, and it meant nothing. Because all this time... after all, he had been dating this beautiful young woman. Then she realized that he had never... never invited her. And this was the most obvious sign that he didn't see her that way.

Suddenly a man's voice was heard, "And now number 16!", exclaimed one of the members of the jury.

Gilbert was relieved to have been interrupted, as he didn't know what to say to Winifred.

"It's your turn, Anne! It's your cake!", Marilla remarked to the young girl.

"Wonderful presentation.", commented a man who was part of the jury.

The only woman member of the jury cut a slice and put it on a plate.

"It's the Lake of Shining Waters!", said Anne, who seemed excited as she spoke to Marilla, forgetting for a moment the sorrow that was overwhelming her.

"It's a bit pretentious.", remarked the woman member of the jury.

Anne was hurt to hear this, but tried to keep a smile on her face.

The three members of the jury each took a fork to taste a bite of the cake. The young girl was nervous when she saw them tasting her cake.

Suddenly grimaces appeared on the faces of the three jury members. The young redhead really started to panic. Then she saw them instantly spit what they had in their mouths into a handkerchief.

The jury members began to exclaim, "Dear God!"

"What is that?"

"That flavoring."

"It tastes like liniment!"

These last words made everyone in the audience laugh, except for the girl's relatives. She breathed deeper and deeper, she was now having a kind of panic attack, her worst nightmare unfolding in front of her eyes. All these people were laughing at her, she had dared to miss Mary's cake, and to top it all Gilbert and Winifred were witness to it. Could the situation get any worse? Yet this morning everything was so perfect, how could everything have gone so wrong so quickly?

Anne could no longer stay under this marquee, she had to leave, she was suffocating, and she didn't want to hear any more laughter or judgments. So she simply started running outside.

Marilla and Matthew looked at each other, sorry for their Anne, she didn't deserve this, and she had so much put her heart in it. But they didn't even have time to react, they saw Gilbert let go of Winifred's arm to run after the young redhead. Everyone looked at each other, they were not really surprised by the young man's gesture, but the only person who wasn't expecting it was a certain blonde.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I plan a very last chapter to conclude this story, this chapter will probably be very long! ^^
> 
> It took me a while to write this chapter, sorry it took me so long, you must know that English is not my mother tongue, I write in French and then translate into English. I hope the next chapter came sooner! In the meantime, please leave me your impressions if you have any.
> 
> If you want to follow me on Twitter, I talk about updates of my fics and I post drawings, I'm @emneeli


	4. The wildflower's naivety

Anne ran through the crowd, going as fast as she could, just like the moment when Rachel Lynde belittled her by judging her appearance, or like that famous day when Mr. Phillips punished her on the board for hitting Gilbert Blythe with her slate after he called her _"Carrots"._ She felt equally humiliated, although the context was quite different, and she was not a child anymore. However, today she was no longer sure, perhaps she was still a child? In any case, it turned out that running was a reflex when her emotions were out of control.

When she was running, everything around her seemed to be gone, all she could think about was finding a refuge. Suddenly she dropped her hat, which landed on the grass, and then people looked at her with a certain curiosity, because she continued to run at full speed while sowing things that belonged to her.

Still rushing, her mind wandered back to the lily-of-the-valley that Gilbert had given her that morning, then she slipped it into her hair... so naively... Sadness giving way to anger, she grabbed the sprig of lily-of-the-valley that was slipped between her blue ribbon and her hair and threw it to the ground. At the same time, a tear that was just waiting to fall, rolled down her cheek.

Now the crowd could trample the flower, just as her heart had been trampled.

Farther on, behind the redhead, it was possible to distinguish Gilbert, who had hastened to catch up with her, now he was also running between the visitors of the Fair, he could see the latter at about fifty steps in front of him. She seemed so injured, he had to reach her, he didn't really know what to say to her, but he would find comforting words when he found himself in front of her.

He couldn't help it, he had to try to do something, because he hated to see her devastated. Although he knew that Anne often had passionate reactions, he was aware that this cake meant something important to her. She had to put her heart into it, like anything she did. He couldn't stand to see her belittled, judged or bullied. He had to stand up for her every time, in any way he could, isn't that what a good friend would do?

And even this famous day when she had hit him with her slate... even that day he defended her. He just couldn't accept that others dared to make fun of her. After all, she was like a rare butterfly that had to be preserved.

He began to shorten the distance between them, but she didn't stop. He had even seen her lose her hat, which he hastened to pick up at once. Then he started shouting her name, "Anne!"

But she refused to slow down, on the contrary, she didn't want him to see her in this way. So she looked around for a moment, she seemed to be searching for a place where she could take refuge away from sight, and especially away from Gilbert's eyes. She didn't want to attract any more attention, she wanted to be alone. She passed in front of the fairground organ, which was playing music so loudly. She instantly made up her mind that if she wanted to shed a few tears without being heard, there would be no better hiding place than behind this machine.

The young man kept shouting her name, but suddenly he lost sight of her at the very moment the man on stilts passed in front of him, blocking his way for a few seconds, but above all cutting off the eye contact he had with the red-haired girl.

When the artist on stilts had finally left, it was too late, there was no more Anne, it took only a few seconds for her to disappear. But Gilbert didn't want to give up, it would take more than that for him to give up. So he continued to call her, "Anne!", but, of course, no one answered.

Then he stopped in the middle of the aisle, peering around him, but no redheads in sight. Perhaps she had already run away from the Fair? No, it was not possible. She was probably in a quieter place.

As he was about to resume his walk, he noticed a sprig of lily of the valley that was stuck to the shoe sole. Couldn't it have been...? He took the flower out of his shoe, there were still the thirteen bells. Although the flower seemed to have been trampled on by many people, including him, he decided to put it in his jacket pocket anyway.

The dark-haired boy continued walking until he reached the large fairground organ, he had no idea that his friend had taken refuge there just a few minutes ago.

Indeed, Anne was sitting on the floor behind the big machine, her arms around her bent legs and her head on her knees. She just wanted to be forgotten and be alone for a few moments. Then suddenly, she saw feet approaching from the other side of the organ, this gait seemed familiar to her, but no, it couldn't be... And then the voices she thought she heard a few seconds ago, no, it couldn't have been Gilbert shouting her name, he was in too good company to worry about her now. Finally, she saw the footsteps move away a few minutes later.

Under the marquee, everyone was still there, Matthew and Marilla were getting ready to see the awards for their category, while Bash waited with Winifred for Gilbert's return.

"Anne... seems to be an important part of Gilbert's life.", she suddenly said as she looked at the young father who was now giving his daughter a baby bottle.

"Oh, well... He knew Anne long before I met him. I heard a lot about her when I was on the ship with him. I mean, a whole bunch of anecdotes, you know.", Sebastian replied with a small smile.

"Oh...I see. Excuse my question, but... is it usual for Gilbert to run after her?"

Bash cleared his throat, no longer sure if he should answer such a question, "Hm. Well, I don't think I should be the one to answer this..."

Winifred looked at this one, confused, why suddenly he didn't want to talk about it anymore?

All of a sudden, Gilbert reappeared under the big tent, he seemed sad and tormented.

"Is she all right?", asked Sebastian, who was also worried.

"I was unable to catch up with her, I don't know where she ran away to.", he replied more concerned than ever.

Winifred immediately recognized the hat the young man was holding in his hands, "Do you want my help to find her?", she innocently suggested.

"Oh... If you want. That's very kind of you.", replied Gilbert.

But Sebastian felt the need to intervene on this, "I think you should go on your own, I mean... I don't think Anne wants to see many people right now."

The boy with the brown curls now felt a little guilty saying out loud his thoughts, "Winifred, you won't mind if I left you a few more minutes? I'm... I'm a little worried about Anne and I wish I could find her to make sure she's okay."

"There's no problem, I think I figured it out. The fact that you didn't invite me should have pointed me out earlier.", She laughed slightly reluctantly, "I need to find my parents. Good luck, Gilbert. Goodbye, Sebastian.", she said as she walked out of the tent and kept her chin up.

Bash said as she watched the young blonde walk away, "I don't know what she understood, but I think it's excluded from having a tea date with her now.", As he finished his sentence, he turned his head to see Gilbert's reaction, but he seemed to have already left the place.

Behind the fairground organ, Anne had finished drying her few tears, she decided to get up, feeling ready to confront all these people again. But her only mission now was to convince Matthew and Marilla to go back to Green Gables, she didn't even want to hear about the Barn Dance anymore.

She made a last round of the fair, she wanted to keep some beautiful images in mind, despite the disastrous turn of events, she could not help smiling when she saw all this joy and celebration around her. She was about to pass in front of the hot-air balloon dressed in bright yellow, making it appear like a sun. She was still as fascinated by this machine, her eyes staring up at the sky, she told herself that the problems must have been quite insignificant from up there.

But the moment she lowered her head and her eyes rested straight in front of her, she was far from imagining that a certain young man would be standing there, just a few steps away from her. Indeed, a boy with brown curls and a mischievous smile seemed to be staring at her, he was also holding a hat in his hands. He had probably just found her.

"You entertained the audience under this tent. Here, I found it on the floor.", he finally said as he took a few steps towards her and handed her the hat.

"Entertain... that's the right word, yes.", she replied bitterly, retrieving her hat and placing it back on her head. The fact that Gilbert had picked it up and brought it back to her didn't surprise her so much, his chivalry was no longer something to be proven.

After an embarrassing silence that seemed to have lasted for hours, Gilbert cleared his throat, he had to justify his presence by saying a comforting word, he was there to support her, as Anne had been able to do with him, "I mean, you know, even Mary would have found it funny.", He didn't know if these words would soothe her, but he was totally sincere in saying it. He had now gotten close enough to be right in front of her, as close as they had been earlier that morning, before Winifred arrived.

"And even though I completely ruined her recipe?", she finally replied, still as disappointed in herself as ever.

"Mary wasn't like that, she would never thought that.", he said with a nervous chuckle.

"You... you're right.", she was now getting ready to leave, "Thank you.", she finally said as she turned around in the hope of joining Marilla and Matthew.

Despite Gilbert's consoling words, there was still certain bitterness in Anne's mind, and no one could find the words for it. No, no one would have the right words to mend her wounded heart. In truth, even though the failure of her cake was a great disappointment, it was nothing compared to what she had learned today. This gorgeous blonde had had several dates with this amazing boy, who was her friend. Yes, that same friend that she had stared at every moment since dance practice at school. Maybe she had done it before? But in any case, it was the day she realized it. Anyway, now she had to hide her memories, she had to be happy for him, like a true friend would be. But most of all she had to stay away from him, it was still too painful to be near him.

The dark-haired boy, frowned when he saw the girl escape again, had he said something wrong? His actions hadn't been enough to cheer her up, what more could he do?

Suddenly a man's voice diverted the boy's attention, "Ladies and Gentlemen! Are you ready for the challenge? You'll never see things in the same way again after getting on board this splendid hot air balloon!"

Gilbert looked at the young redhead again, and an idea came to him, "Anne!"

She turned around, confused, what more could he say to her? So she made her way back to meet him again, but she began to say, without having control over the words that came out of her mouth, "I'm... I'm fine. Honestly I'm fine. I'm really happy for you, you don't have to worry, I'm-", as her thoughts had decided to speak without warning, she immediately stopped, realizing what she had just said.

He frowned, what was she referring to? Winifred? He ended up answering with a slight, confused chuckle, "What...? I... no. Actually I was wondering if you would accompany me up there?", He pointed to the balloon immediately.

"Oh... But why don't you invite Winifred? I'm sure she'd be delighted.", She seemed so embarrassed, how could she still be alone with him for even a few seconds, so traveling up there... there would be no escape. After naively imagining his intentions behind his actions, she couldn't afford to fall into that trap again. This trap was her overly fertile imagination.

Gilbert suddenly felt at a loss for words, if he had to think of only one person to go up there with him, Winifred would never have been the one he had in mind, this experience could only be lived with Anne. He could already imagine her raving with such enthusiasm. Indeed, how was it possible to think of someone else? He felt like he was making a discovery, he understood how important the redhead was in his life.

After a silence, he finally tried to answer, or rather to justify himself, "Winifred is gone. She had to join her parents."

"Oh...", Anne couldn't help but feel hurt again. So... she was the second choice? There was no other reason for him to come back to her like that, what audacity he had...

Suddenly, the man promoting his hot air balloon found himself next to the two teenagers, "So young folks! You won't be able to resist this extraordinary experience! If you agree to be the first to get on board, I'll give you a special price!"

Gilbert, with a small smirk on his face, insisted as he looked at the girl, "Didn't you say you'd find the view thrilling if you went up there?"

"My imagination has told me, but I don't know if I can always rely on it.", She tried to reason with a certain sadness in her voice.

"There's only one way to find out, do you accept?", he asked again, his eyes almost imploring.

The young redhead, no longer feeling the strength to resist, nodded, "Well... I-I accept."

A radiant smile suddenly appeared on Gilbert's face, as if her answer was the most wonderful thing he had heard all day.

The Aeronaut was waiting next to the craft, and the two teenagers had to put their legs over the basket to climb into it. The young brown boy stepped over the first one so he could help Anne, he reached out his hand, but Anne pretended not to see him and preferred to hang on to the ropes to help herself. Gilbert placed his hand behind his head, pretending that the girl had not ignored him just before.

Anne couldn't hide a certain excitement, although she already regretted a little that she had agreed to accompany him, who knows what she would be able to say up there? But she had nothing to worry about, the chatter would probably not be their main concern up there, only the view would matter.

Once installed in the balloon basket, the aeronaut joined them in turn, he operated the burner to get the balloon off the ground. Men had untied the ropes that connected the aerostat to the ground, very gently they released as the craft took off into the skies.

The redhead was already in full euphoria, she was waving to the people below that they were looking at them with curiosity and fascination, she was in such a hurry to be able to fly. As for Gilbert, although he was also impressed by this experience, it was not to the ground he was looking at, nor to the sky. All he managed to do at that moment was to gaze at Anne, her smile, her eyes, her gestures. Even the most beautiful landscapes would have a hard time competing with this.

"Gilbert, how can you not be as ecstatic as I am?! It's so spectacular!",

The young man looked at her smiling, "But I am!"

They were now high enough in the sky to begin to roam the landscapes of Prince Edward Island, they were now arriving on the edges of cliffs, they could see the ocean and then the waves hitting the rocks.

"Hello Prince Edward Island! What an exceptional perspective! Isn't it wonderful?!", Anne shouted from her chest, which made the aeronaut smile.

Gilbert shouted back, "Ouhouuuuh!!".

Anne laughed, "That's what I call enjoying the view."

The balloon continued to fly along the coast, twenty minutes later, the excitement passed, the young redhead was now calm, she was just looking for Green Gables in the distance, leaning on the edge of the basket, "I never thought I' d experience this today, I see my problems in a completely different way now, thank you."

"Thank you for accepting... and glad it helped.", he answered with a smile.

"Earlier I wanted to go back to Green Gables, but now I feel like I could go through any storm."

"It seemed to me that Anne Shirley-Cuthbert could only be stubborn."

She simply replied with a smile and a defiant look, "I dare to hope that's a compliment?", and then her eyes gazed at the horizon.

Gilbert, who was standing to her right, turned completely towards the young girl and stared at her for a few seconds. Anne felt it then she turned her head and plunged her eyes into his, they seemed to smile at each other, just by exchanging this look. She suddenly remembered that they were not alone on board, the aeronaut was right behind them, and he must have been laughing at the situation or just being uncomfortable. She tried to find a way to stop this exchange of glances.

"Winifred...", she suddenly dropped, which surprised the young man who didn't understand where it was coming from, the redhead continued immediately, "...Where did you meet her?"

Anne could hardly believe it herself, she had really just asked that question? After all it was normal to talk about all sorts of topics if they were friends, wasn't it? The truth is that it bothered her, she didn't really want to talk about this young woman, even though she seemed nice, why would she want to talk about the girl who took HER place! That's it, she had admitted it to herself, she felt terribly jealous, and it was impossible for her to appreciate the latter for this single reason.

The dark-haired boy felt strangely embarrassed, why did he feel it was a subject that should not be talked about with Anne? But reluctantly, he finally replied, "Well, I met her at Dr. Ward's practice, she has been her assistant for several months."

The teenager realized that they had been dating for a long time, and this information devastated her even more, "Oh, I see. She...She seems quite lovely, and she's very pretty. She's...she's a real lady.", You could feel a certain pain in her voice.

Gilbert suddenly remembered he had put something in his pocket, "I had forgotten I'd found something else earlier...", He was now holding the very damaged sprig of lily-of-the-valley in his hands.

"Oh...", said Anne speechless, she didn't want to believe it, this flower that she had thrown with such anger because it reminded her of how naive she had been, had just come back to her face.

A long embarrassing silence followed, even the aeronaut felt uncomfortable.

"Isn't it funny that I found it stuck to my shoe? Isn't it luck?", Gilbert finally asked, laughing, trying to relax the atmosphere.

How could he still torture her like this, he was not even aware of what this flower could have meant to her. For him, it was just fun.

So without thinking, she took the sprig of lily of the valley from the young man's hand and threw it overboard. He couldn't believe his eyes, why had she done that?

"Anne?! Wh-why?!", he exclaimed in amazement.

Anne nibbled her lips, she could no longer hold back, "I...I hated that flower!"

"You, hate a flower? How-"

She interrupted him, "That-that wasn't really the flower I hated, but what it meant."

Gilbert was always so confused, he felt so disappointed by the girl's act.

"She never brought me luck, it was just the opposite.", she added.

"Indeed...but I- "

"But what... Gilbert? There's nothing else to say. This flower represented nothing else after all."

The dark-haired boy didn’t know what to say, so he remained silent for the rest of the trip. Anne had gone to the other side of the basket, the mood was not as cheerful as it was at the beginning. A few times later, the balloon went down again, and when they landed on dry land, it was as if the two teenagers came back to reality. Anne hurried down first and Gilbert followed her very closely.

The young girl turned around one last time, to thank him with a simple nod. The two friends didn't need to speak to see that something had broken between them. If the redhead knew why, it was different for the young man.

A moment later, Anne was looking for the Cuthberts, she saw them quite quickly. She started running towards them.

"Oh! Anne! Where are you going while running again! We're starting to get worried!", exclaimed Marilla, who was standing next to Matthew at the entrance to the Fair.

"I...I was...I was up in the hot air balloon!"

"What?! Alone?!"

"Oh no, it's Gilbert, he invited me to join him."

Brother and sister exchanged glances full of innuendo.

"Did you at least succeed where I failed?", asked Anne as if to switch topics, even though she really cared to know the answer.

Marilla showed her red ribbon which meant that it had been a great success for her Plum Puffs, "The judges tried again to get my recipe.", she said with a proud smile.

As for Matthew, he held up his ribbon to the girl, which read _"The most unusual"_.

The redhead laughed bitterly, "The most unusual... I should've entered myself into this category. I would've won."

Matthew then approached her to give her the ribbon, commenting, "I figure this is a badge of honor."

The woman with the bun couldn't help but say when she saw her slightly depressed face, "Cheer up, Anne. Your cake was a work of art. And Mary, bless her soul, would've laughed and laughed."

At this remark, Anne couldn't help reminding herself of Gilbert, who had had the same comforting words. Maybe they were only meant to be friends, he had been the best of friends to her today, but then....

"In fact, I would like to know one thing.", added Marilla seriously, "How on earth did you manage to get liniment into the cake?"

"I only added what the recipe said...", the young redhead innocently replied.

The old woman was even more confused, "What flavouring did you use?"

"Vanilla. But... I broke the bottle. So I had to use the spare one from the pantry."

Marilla then realized with stupefaction, "Oh, dear. I believe it’s my fault. I broke the liniment bottle ages ago and poured what was left into an old, empty vanilla bottle."

Anne laughed, she felt an immense relief, finally she wasn't as helpless as she thought she was, she exclaimed, "And I couldn't smell it because I had such a cold!"

"You are an unlucky girl, Anne, there's no doubt about that."

"I'm not unlucky...", Then she held up Matthew's ribbon, "I'm just unusual.", The two women then laughed out loud.

The family took a last walk to the fair in the afternoon, Anne had forgotten that she had wanted to go back to Green Gables at some point, although hectic, the trip in the air had done her the greatest joy. She was now ready to face the dance and who knows she might have a good time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter took a long time to come, I hope you haven't given up on this fic, the next chapter will be the last one! I hope so ahah!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks a lot to Niamh and Nancy for helping me find a title for this fic! And thanks to Marie for telling me so much about this episode, otherwise I probably wouldn't have written about it!
> 
> I hope this first part is not too disappointing, it was necessary for me that the initial situation was very similar, but don't worry the difference will be felt in the next part ^^


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